Immigration Transition and Depressive Symptoms: Four Major Ethnic Groups of Midlife Women in the United States

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between immigration transition and depressive symptoms among 1,054 midlife women in the United States. This was a secondary analysis of the data from two national Internet survey studies. Questions on background characteristics and immigration transition and the Depression Index for Midlife Women were used to collect the data. The data were analyzed using inferential statistics including multiple regressions. Immigrants reported lower numbers of symptoms and less severe symptoms than nonimmigrants (p <.01). When controlling for background characteristics, self-reported racial/ethnic identity and immigration status were significant predictors of depressive symptoms (R² =.01, p <.05).